Every day, the field of medicine witnesses new discoveries, theories, and concepts. The average medical researcher has to keep pace with these changes. Moreover, he or she has to also contribute regularly to his or her field of work. Therefore, the process of preparation of a manuscript produced by him or her is extremely important. However, a document that is full of mistakes will be rejected by many. So, here are some mistakes you should avoid in your medical paper.
Male or female – Noun or adjective
Female and male are adjectives in the medical context and not nouns. For instance, a 24 year old female could refer to both a human being as well as an animal. However, when you rephrase this as a 24 year old woman, it would be more specific and would imply the female of the human species.
Commonly confused words
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Radiography versus radiogram – Be careful while using these two words since “radiogram” indicates the presence of a particular condition while “radiography” means a procedure that can be performed.
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Patient versus case – While a case refers to a condition with its related circumstances, a patient means a person who is suffering from a specific condition.
Article usage
It can be tricky to understand the usage of an article. The most common error is the omission of the different articles before the names of body parts. However, the use of the definite article “the” will be sufficient if the names of the body parts are a part of a list. However, the rule is not applicable to certain idioms. For example, do not take this to heart.
Other common errors
The use of the word “significant” should not be done except when indicating significance of a statistical nature. The contents of figures and tables should always be in present tense and not in the past or future tense.
Kunutu – Medical Manuscript Writing 